An overview of the operating theory and practical applications of voice processing technology. From the basics of telephonics, to speech recognition and coding and language processing, all the essential concepts are explored, with an emphasis on applied science.

How interactive voice-based technology can tap into the automatic and powerful responses all speech—whether from human or machine—evokes. Interfaces that talk and listen are populating computers, cars, call centers, and even home appliances and toys, but voice interfaces invariably frustrate rather than help. In Wired for Speech, Clifford Nass and Scott Brave reveal how interactive voice technologies can readily and effectively tap into the automatic responses all speech—whether from human or machine—evokes. Wired for Speech demonstrates that people are "voice-activated": we respond to voice technologies as we respond to actual people and behave as we would in any social situation. By leveraging this powerful finding, voice interfaces can truly emerge as the next frontier for efficient, user-friendly technology. Wired for Speech presents new theories and experiments and applies them to critical issues concerning how people interact with technology-based voices. It considers how people respond to a female voice in e-commerce (does stereotyping matter?), how a car's voice can promote safer driving (are "happy" cars better cars?), whether synthetic voices have personality and emotion (is sounding like a person always good?), whether an automated call center should apologize when it cannot understand a spoken request ("To Err is Interface; To Blame, Complex"), and much more. Nass and Brave's deep understanding of both social science and design, drawn from ten years of research at Nass's Stanford laboratory, produces results that often challenge conventional wisdom and common design practices. These insights will help designers and marketers build better interfaces, scientists construct better theories, and everyone gain better understandings of the future of the machines that speak with us.

Science fiction has long been populated with conversational computers and robots. Now, speech synthesis and recognition have matured to where a wide range of real-world applicationsâ€"from serving people with disabilities to boosting the nation's competitivenessâ€"are within our grasp. Voice Communication Between Humans and Machines takes the first interdisciplinary look at what we know about voice processing, where our technologies stand, and what the future may hold for this fascinating field. The volume integrates theoretical, technical, and practical views from world-class experts at leading research centers around the world, reporting on the scientific bases behind human-machine voice communication, the state of the art in computerization, and progress in user friendliness. It offers an up-to-date treatment of technological progress in key areas: speech synthesis, speech recognition, and natural language understanding. The book also explores the emergence of the voice processing industry and specific opportunities in telecommunications and other businesses, in military and government operations, and in assistance for the disabled. It outlines, as well, practical issues and research questions that must be resolved if machines are to become fellow problem-solvers along with humans. Voice Communication Between Humans and Machines provides a comprehensive understanding of the field of voice processing for engineers, researchers, and business executives, as well as speech and hearing specialists, advocates for people with disabilities, faculty and students, and interested individuals.

Straightforward and jargon-free, this updated edition is highly useful for anyone wanting to understand the latest advances in telecommunications and the rapidly evolving field of voice and data communications."--Jacket.

This book presents a review of the latest advances in speech and video compression, computer networking protocols, the assessment and monitoring of VoIP quality, and next generation network architectures for multimedia services. The book also concludes with three case studies, each presenting easy-to-follow step-by-step instructions together with challenging hands-on exercises. Features: provides illustrative worked examples and end-of-chapter problems; examines speech and video compression techniques, together with speech and video compression standards; describes the media transport protocols RTP and RTCP, as well as the VoIP signalling protocols SIP and SDP; discusses the concepts of VoIP quality of service and quality of experience; reviews next-generation networks based on the IP multimedia subsystem and mobile VoIP; presents case studies on building a VoIP system based on Asterisk, setting up a mobile VoIP system based on Open IMS and Android mobile, and analysing VoIP protocols and quality.

How interactive voice-based technology can tap into the automatic and powerful responses all speech--whether from human or machine--evokes.

An examination of more than sixty years of successes and failures in developing technologies that allow computers to understand human spoken language. Stanley Kubrick's 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey famously featured HAL, a computer with the ability to hold lengthy conversations with his fellow space travelers. More than forty years later, we have advanced computer technology that Kubrick never imagined, but we do not have computers that talk and understand speech as HAL did. Is it a failure of our technology that we have not gotten much further than an automated voice that tells us to "say or press 1"? Or is there something fundamental in human language and speech that we do not yet understand deeply enough to be able to replicate in a computer? In The Voice in the Machine, Roberto Pieraccini examines six decades of work in science and technology to develop computers that can interact with humans using speech and the industry that has arisen around the quest for these technologies. He shows that although the computers today that understand speech may not have HAL's capacity for conversation, they have capabilities that make them usable in many applications today and are on a fast track of improvement and innovation. Pieraccini describes the evolution of speech recognition and speech understanding processes from waveform methods to artificial intelligence approaches to statistical learning and modeling of human speech based on a rigorous mathematical model--specifically, Hidden Markov Models (HMM). He details the development of dialog systems, the ability to produce speech, and the process of bringing talking machines to the market. Finally, he asks a question that only the future can answer: will we end up with HAL-like computers or something completely unexpected?

Monograph Series of the International Council for Computer Communications, Volume 1: The Office of the Future: Communication and Computers focuses on the advancements in the processes, technologies, techniques, principles, and approaches involved in communication and computers, including computer based tools, data gathering and information retrieval, and office automation. The publication first elaborates on the automated office of the future, tools to support the communication activity, and text editing tools for generating, organizing, analyzing, and transforming information. Discussions focus on generating, organizing, and analyzing information, basic message system concepts, impact of computer networks, and other processes in the office. The text then examines the integration of computer based tools, data gathering and information retrieval tools, coordination tools in the office of the future, and tools to support office processes. The manuscript ponders on the integration of the spoken word with interactive computer based office support systems, underlying technology, digital channel, and software aspects of the office environment utilizing the micro-processor. Topics include single board computer, advances in digital computer communications technology, future directions for digital networks, bandwidth availability, and storage and retrieval of voice information. The book is a dependable source of data for computer science experts and researchers interested in the relationship of communication and computers.